Haven’t heard of the Aussie Millions yet? Well, it’s just the most prestigious live poker tournament outside of the USA, so if you’re a poker player and you haven’t yet heard of it, shame on you.

I know what you’re going to say: it takes place in Australia and it’s probably only for big-shots, so there no point in you getting all excited about it, right? Wrong.The event does indeed take place in Australia, in the Crown Casino Resort in Melbourne, and yes it will be attended by scores of poker celebrities. It will be televised, and it will feature a $1,000,000 first prize, No Limit Texas Holdem main event.

With all that though, it is accessible for the everyday guy, such as you and I, too. There are several ways to gain access to the event itself, but if you do it through Full Tilt Poker, you might just end up getting more than you bargained for – in a good way. Beginning on January the 14th, 2008, and with the final table set for January the 20th, there is still plenty of time for you to figure out a way to get there.

If you play at Full Tilt, not only will you gain entry to the event itself, you’ll also find yourself at the receiving end of an $18,000 prize package which includes a lot more than that, namely: Round trip to Melbourne from LA, for you and a friend of yours. 10 nights accommodation at the Crown Casino Resort and several chances to rub elbows with the cream of the poker world, in different recreational events.

This offer has all the potential to make your wildest vacation dreams come true, not just by what it offers, but also by taking you on a summer holiday in the middle of the frosty Northern-Hemisphere winter.

How can you possibly get your hands on the $18,000 package? There are several ways:

If you’re really low on cash, or you’re just intrigued by the idea that you can win something that valuable, on nothing but pure poker skill, try one of the bi-monthly freerolls. In order to be granted a seat in one of these freerolls, you have to generate 5,000 Full Tilt Poker points during the 2 weeks qualifying period. The good news is, that both players who finish 1st and 2nd in the freeroll, win an Aussie Millions package.

5,000 poker points sound too much for the limit you play at? No worries, you can also enter one of the STT satellites, which grants you access to a round 2 MTT. Final table finishers at these MTTs, will all gain a seat in one of the bi-monthly freerolls.

If you feel something this big is worth an investment on your part, buy into one of the Aussie Sunday tournaments for $500+$35, and win a package there. If $500 is too steep for you, gain access to the Sunday tournaments via one of the feeders. (these satellites range from $24+$2, to $100+$9 in buy-ins )

Yet another possibility for you to win one of these fabulous packages is to play in the $300 Tuesday tournaments from August the 21st to December the 15th 2007, in case you’re busy with other things on Sundays. The buy-ins are $300+$22, and the Aussie Tuesdays also feature feeder satellites with smaller buy-ins.

If you’re one of them high-rollers who really want to make it to Melbourne, the $1,000 Thursday tournaments are the answer for you. The high, $1,000+$60 buy-ins will mean there will be less competition here, and thus better odds for grabbing one of the prize-packages. At the moment, there are no satellites running for this event either, so you’re bound to get some really good EV+ here.

The 25 seat guaranteed tourney taking place on December the 9th, could be your ticket to Melbourne. Satellites for this event are already running, and Full Tilt will give away at least 25 prize packages for those who finish in the first 25 places. Who said you had to finish first to win?

Only one prize package/person will be awarded, and naturally, employees of Full Tilt Poker, including their close relatives, will be forbidden to participate in any of the events and satellites.

The winners of the packages will also get instruction from Full Tilt Poker team members like Howard Lederer and Chris Ferguson, and they’ll enjoy a formal dinner. The package also includes $3,000 in spending money, something which I forgot to mention earlier.